Howard Community College hands ’Jacks 3-0 soccer lossDavis comes up big with 18 saves to keep Chesapeake in the game

WYE MILLS  Sebastian Pantino and Max Graumann scored second-half goals Friday afternoon as Howard Community College finally broke the game open on the way to a 3-0 men’s soccer victory over host Chesapeake College.

Howard (6-4-1 overall, 6-2 Maryland JuCo) outshot Chesapeake, 38-0, but had only a 1-0 halftime lead on Meshal Alduaig’s goal with 10 minutes left in the first half. The Skipjacks (0-6, 0-6) stayed in the game as goalie Mace Davis registered 18 saves and the Chesapeake defense employed a "bend-but-don’t-break" philosophy.

"Our defense played very well and Mace Davis had some great saves in goal to keep the score down," said Chesapeake head coach Mark Dennis. "We just were never able to create much of a threat on offense.

"Most of the game ended up being played in our half of the field," added Dennis. "Despite being under constant pressure, I thought Thomas Eliason, Tyler Fisher, Drew Abplanalp and Adam Bowers held their defensive shape and performed well."

The Skipjacks travel to North East Wednesday for a 3 p.m. game against host Cecil College (1-11, 0-8) in a battle of teams looking for their first conference win of the season.

"We are very much looking forward to playing Cecil," said Dennis. "We will certainly still be the underdogs due to our number of inexperienced players, but at least we will be playing a program that usually encounters the same hardships in fielding numbers on the roster as we do.

"Also, like us, they usually are made up of mostly local players," added Dennis. "It should be a good match if we are able to create some offensive opportunities."